Earth Day 2016: My Favorite Eco-Conscious Beauty Brands

Today is one of my favorite days of the year.. it’s Earth Day!! I am not only passionate about exploring and appreciating our incredible Earth, but also about doing my best to help preserve it. This includes supporting companies that are consciously aware of their environmental footprint. I believe that even the smallest contributions to the environment are to be celebrated, and while some companies may not be perfect, any level of mindfulness regarding the environment is productive.

Here are some of my favorite eco-conscious beauty brands who’s passion for conservation and the environment is clearly evident in their business practices.

DR. BRONNER’S

Thanks to my earth-loving mama, I’ve been lucky enough to have a bottle of Dr. Bronner’s Peppermint Soap in my shower since I was a kid. This company is an Earth Day personal care product poster child. Their mission is to make socially and environmentally responsible products of the highest quality, and they dedicate their profits to helping make a better world. This company is so impressive, check out this post I wrote for a more in-depth look into the company and their amazing environmental and social policies.

KEVIN MURPHY

Kevin Murphy is one of my favorite haircare lines that I not only keep in my kit, but use personally as well. It wasn’t until recently that I learned about their contributions to the environment but this brand is doing some really cool things. Kevin Murphy uses packaging that is recyclable and/or biodegradable. They use mostly square shapes in their packaging in order to utilize the most space when shipping their products; this ensures the smallest amount of boxes get used and reduces unnecessary waste.

Kevin Murphy’s ingredients are from sources that are sustainable, renewable and are harvested utilizing methods that do not cause any harm to the environment. Their products are sulfate free and they only work with companies who use micro cultivation, organic growing practices, or ecologically sound wild harvesting techniques.

The company has also partnered with Green Circle Salons, an organization that is comprised of a collection of salons utilizing sustainable waste management. They send everyday by-products like hair clippings, aluminum foils, color tubes and applicators for innovative reuse and environment-friendly recycling. Green Circle Salons also employs unique environmental initiatives, such as using hair to help clean up oil spills and turning color tubes and color waste into clean energy.

Kevin Murphy works with Al Gore’s global non-profit The Climate Reality Project which is working toward finding climate solutions at a grassroots level worldwide. Kevin Murphy himself is a presenter within the organization and works to communicate climate control messages to his network of hairdressers and customers. He donates to The Climate Reality Project as well as Culture is Life, an different organization that’s working to raise public awareness and policy change regarding the the high rate of youth suicide among Indigenous Australians.

They are also PETA certified cruelty-free.

JURLIQUE

Jurlique is an Australian based company founded by a biochemist and a botanist who started a farm in South Australia to grow the ingredients for their skincare brand. Jurlique implements Biodynamic farming which focuses on growing plants in a holistic way, in cooperation with nature and with minimal impact on the earth. They don’t use any chemicals, pesticides or herbicides that aren’t already from nature.

As of 2013, more than 90% of Jurlique’s production site waste is reused, recycled or energy-recovered. They are also committed to lowering the environmental impact of their packaging and in 2014, they won the Highest Performer Award from the Australian Packaging Covenant (a sustainable packaging initiative).

As a company, Jurlique does “tree planting days” and has contributed to over 10,000 planted trees in South Austrailia. Their 2014 initiative asked everyone within the company to commute to work by either public transport, carpool, bicycle or walk once a month.

While the brand is not 100% natural, their mission is to use at least 95% natural ingredients in their products. They also source any ingredients that aren’t grown on their farm from sustainable and fair-trade suppliers.

Jurlique itself does not test on animals but the brand is sold in China where animal testing is mandatory. Therefore unfortunately, it is not cruelty free.

KENZA

Kenza International Beauty carries some of my favorite facial oils. Khadija Fajry owns Kenza International Beauty and her products are consciously created, sustainably sourced and also produced by women’s cooperatives in Morroco.

With the motto “be generously beautiful,” Kenza International Beauty uses it’s buying power to support social change for women by partnering with two women’s foundations in the US, as well as directly supporting a women’s cooperative in Morocco.

My favorite products from Kenza are the Pure Argan Oil and the Prickly Pear Seed Oil (both organic). Her products are cruelty free and contain no parabans, mineral oils, silicones, alcohol or colorants.

COOLA

I discovered Coola a few years ago when I was looking for a better, more natural face sunscreen. They are an eco-conscious brand that uses (as much as possible) ingredients that are natural, organic (70%) and sustainable.

Coola’s ingredients and vendors are locally sourced “to promote communities and jobs as well as cutting down on the costs of long distance shipping (both financial and environmental).”

Coola is cruelty free (PETA certified) and recycle friendly. In fact, they’ve recently reduced the plastic of their packaging by 30%. Coola’s products are also free of petroleum, parabens, and phthalates.

I’m always on the look out for eco-friendly and eco-conscious beauty brands, so feel free to share your personal favorites in the comments!

Disclaimer: All of the products shown in this post have been purchased by me. I have not been contacted by any of the companies to be included in this write up. Some links may be affiliate.

I am a freelance makeup artist in Los Angeles working mainly in print and television. Makeup and traveling are my passion and my heart resides at La Isla De Los Monos Monkey Rescue Center in the Peruvian Amazon.

3 Comments

Hi Lindsey
This is such a lovely blog you have here, very informative. There’s another brand here in Australia based in New South Wales that is slowly gaining popularity because it uses edible (yes edible!) ingredients – it is called Moo Goo and I highly recommend their products because they are natural but use high quality ingredients. Really worth a look if and pretty sure they ship to the States. Have a great day! 🙂